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Originally Posted by Chris Hibner
Personally, I think the practice robot CLOSES the gap between the haves and the have nots. Okay, maybe this is not true for the real hardship cases that can't afford to buy materials, but I think this is true for the majority of teams.
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This is absolutely true. By allowing teams to build a practice robot the gap between the "haves" and the "have-mores" becomes narrower. However, building two robots is about a lot more than having an advantage.
When a team decides to build two robots it is a pretty large decision. More money must be spent, a significant portion of team resources must be directed away from the main robot during the 6 week build to start a practice robot, and they risk not finishing it and wasting everything. In most cases a team has to start assembling their practice bot while finishing up their competition bot because it is not worth it to finish a practice bot 3 days before your regional. The 2 robots will usually be built side by side.
This process is more a challenge than an advantage. Teams that decide to build two robots take on much more that teams that just build their competition robot.
I believe that if teams want to take on the additional challenge that building 2 robots presents, let them have at it. They will earn the right to practice more and tweak to perfection.
Allowing practice robots is good for FIRST.